Conductive polymer coatings are formed of polymers which are intrinsically electrically-conductive, and do not require incorporation of electrically-conductive additives (e.g., carbon black, carbon nanotubes, metal flake, etc.) to support substantial conductivity of electronic charge carriers. Conductive polymer coatings may be used in a variety of applications including electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, antennas, electrostatic discharge, displays, photovoltaic devices, chemical/biological sensors, data- or charge-storage devices, resistive heaters, and transistors. Examples of conductive polymers include poly(ethylene-3,4-dioxythiophene) (PEDOT), polyaniline (PAni), polypyrrole (PPy), poly(p-phenylene vinylene) (PPV), polynaphthalene, and polyacetylene.
Certain conventional methods of forming conductive polymer coatings involve depositing a liquid polymer solution, for example, by spray-, dip- or spin-coating techniques. The resulting coatings may be inhomogeneous due to poor solution wetting of the surface. This inhomogeneity can cause the coating to have non-uniform properties, amongst other problems.